Living Near Major Roads Ups Cardiac Death Risk In Women

Living near a major transportation area can increase the risk of dying from sudden cardiac death, particularly in women.

Researchers had previously discovered a modest increase in coronary heart disease among those living near major roadways. However, new research from the study shows that close proximity to these roadways can dramatically increase the risk of the health problem.

"It's important for health care providers to recognize that environmental exposures may be appreciated risk factors for diseases such as sudden cardiac death and fatal coronary heart disease," said Jaime E. Hart, Sc.D., study lead author and an instructor in medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, in a news release. "On a population level, living near a major roadway was as important a risk factor as smoking, diet or obesity."

For their findings, researchers studied data from 107,130 women who were part of the Nurses' Health Study from 1986-2012. Researchers calculated residential distance to roadways, including certain factors.

Researchers found that living within 50 m (164 ft) of a major road increased sudden cardiac death risk by 38 percent, compared with those who lived at least 500 m (0.3 miles) away.

Additionally, each 100 m (328 ft) closer a participant lived to major roadways increased her risk for sudden cardiac death by 6 percent.

"Regardless of where you live, adopting heart-healthy habits, such as maintaining a healthy weight, being physically active, eating nutritious foods, quitting smoking, and managing stress, can help decrease your risk of heart and blood vessel disease," added Hart, who is also an instructor at the Harvard School of Public Health. "Our next step is to try to determine what specific exposures, such as air pollution, are driving the association between heart disease and major roadway proximity."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal Circulation.